Mosaic of Euterpe

Third quarter of the 2nd century AD26 x 26.5 x 4.5 cmOpus vermiculatum on tileMNAT 45252-1

Mosaic depicting Euterpe, the Muse of music, found in the Roman villa of Els Munts (Altafulla).

It shows a female bust with an aulos (double flute) and a crest, the attributes of Euterpe, one of the nine Muses. Executed in opus vermiculatum, the mosaic is inserted into a ceramic piece that acts simultaneously as a support and a frame. Its manufacture is technically perfect and its artistic quality magnificent; it is perhaps attributable stylistically to a central Italian workshop.